Photo by Oladimeji Ajegbile from Pexels When you look into your students’ eyes, perhaps you sometimes imagine who they’ll be in 10 or 20 years. Will that sparkling face be a teacher or preacher someday, with their own audience? Will those...

One of the best things about seasons is the excitement as a spent season rolls over into a brand-new one. While we all have favorites, spring is especially exciting with new life popping up everywhere. Who doesn’t feel their sprits rise...

Ramesseum image by Christopher Michel on Flickr I suppose I’ve heard the term unprecedented used more often in the last six weeks than I have in the last sixty years. I’ve used it myself. Until I realized how often it’s being misused....

Recently, one of my students asked how many days are left in first grade. I replied that we weren’t going to think about that yet. She told me she just wondered how long until we will be sad! I do a lot of reflecting in April, thinking...

I love when ideas simply present themselves, almost without my conscious thought. In fact, I have noticed that when I become fixated on solving a problem, spending lots of time and energy trying to figure out its solution, it rarely works...

Bright sunshine, balmy breezes, stuffy classroom, worn workbooks, antsy students, dreamy teacher—it’s springtime and the end of school is beckoning. The countdown is getting lower but there are still some weeks left until the welcome...

I offer you a strange story without a clear ending. My perspective goes like this: Just as I pulled away from the stop sign on my way home from town, I saw him. He held a sign: “Traveling. Broke. Hungry.” As my car rolled past, he...

Education has many acronyms such as ELL, ADHD, ESSA, and CCSS (English Language Learner, Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder, Every Student Succeeds Act, Common Core State Standards). Here is a new acronym, and one that should apply to...

Many teachers assume high-school students already have good study skills. I mean, how hard can it be to read a textbook or take notes from a lecture? You would think that eight years of learning the three R’s would prepare students for...

“Is today journaling?” eagerly asks my little student, a non-native English speaker. “Yes!” Their cheers greet the announcement of journal class. I’m greeted by students in the morning. “I know what I’m going to journal about. Can I...

Photo by Tanya Gorelova from Pexels “Ok, class, open your reading books to ‘Candy Pills for the Stomach.’ Kay, you may start reading. Each of you read one paragraph when it is your turn.” “Mumble, mumble, stumble, pause, wait to be helped...

It’s that time of year when many of us find ourselves thinking forward. It’s finally time to turn over that new leaf that we have been staring at for the last several years. I am resolved once again to find more opportunities for my...

Photo by cottonbro from Pexels “Tomorrow we don’t have school, because the teachers come to work. Monday when we come back, we have music and library.” This was my end-of-day announcement on March 12, 2020. Little did I know that was the...

Perhaps you, like me, would like to be one of those noble teachers with a classroom pet. You've heard the student say, “Well last year Miss Miller had a rabbit/gerbil/parrot/goose and we got to name it and hold it every day! When are you...

When I think back to when I was in school, I think science was my least favorite subject. It didn’t make sense to me, and I thought it was boring. Now that I’m teaching, science is one of my favorite subjects. Doing these five steps made...

We know the iGeneration refers to those who grew up with the knowledge of technology. Does it also suggest people whose lives center around me, me, me, what I want, and when I want it? Sometimes I wonder. What will a me-centric person do...

Planners and I have a long and troubled relationship. I used to use the old Rod and Staff planner/gradebook combo. That worked really well in the first couple of years. I liked how I could see the whole week laid out in one place. I liked...

Harnai port, India by Cj.Samson/Wikimedia Commons Lucinda continues the series of stories of Christian martyrs and heroes from the past. We hope you will be inspired by these histories and perhaps find them helpful in preparing for school...

A bit over a year ago, I was introduced to a new spelling curriculum: Words Their Way . I like it! It takes a bit of doing to get started (a diagnostic test and an unusual method of checking the test followed by forming groups of students...

I recently returned from a choir tour on which I had the privilege of visiting four other schools, talking with the teachers, and gleaning ideas. Something that has always intrigued me is how teachers spend their days. Here is a snapshot...